Each year the ATO highlights some big-ticket errors that top their list.
If you work from home, invest in property and/or crypto or run a side hustle for some extra coin, this is for you.
If there is one piece of advice we can give, take the utmost care when completing your tax return. The ATO is on the lookout for anyone inadvertently, or purposely making mistakes on their claims to boost their returns.
So what is on the hit list for the 2023-24 tax year?
The 2023-2024 Tax Claims Hit List
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Work-Related Expenses
Work-related expenses are yet again, top of the list. With working from home still booming in its post-COVID era, the ATO is looking closely that deductions are being calculated correctly.
The 67c per hour fixed rate still stands so you will need to supply either a timesheet or roster to prove the working-from-home hours. This 67c per hour also includes mobile phone usage – so be sure not to claim mobile as an additional expense – no double-dipping!
The ATO are wary that many taxpayers are claiming the 5,000km limit with no receipts, without actually conducting any travel. Be sure you can substantiate your motor vehicle expenses for work-related travel.
If you are claiming expenses under $300 – be sure to keep the receipt, as some are being caught claiming expenses under $300 without incurring the expense at all.
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Property investors
The ATO has announced in recent audits it found a high strike rate of 90% of errors in landlord returns for deductions on their properties. Hence, the alert for landlords this year.
If you are a landlord, be sure not to:
– claim additional interest (such as that on your Principal Place of Residence (PPOR).
– apportion your interest incorrectly (such as to joint owners and proportioning less to the higher income earner)
– deduct costs for renovations or repairs – they cannot be claimed immediately but need to be deductible over several years. -
Side hustles
With the cost-of-living crisis, side hustles continue to rise, and the ATO is onto it. They believe many well-meaning Aussies are tapping into the sharing economy but are not declaring their additional incomes.
We are talking Uber, Airtasker, Freelancer, Air BnB and all those platforms where you pay for personal hire or rent out your assets.
These platforms now feed info to the ATO which can highlight any mismatches with your tax return.
Yep, that’s right. The ATO is making it harder and harder for those trying to slip through the cracks.
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Crypto and shares
Those who make profits on Crypto , be alert! Of the 500,000 Aussies who have invested in Crypto, the ATO is checking for those who are not declaring their income and paying Capital Gains Tax on their profits.
A data matching program helps the ATO identify those not paying the right amount of tax from their Crypto investments.
We suggest to pull your CGT reports from your crypto wallet, or if you do not have this service, use a service from Koinly, Crypto Tax Calculator or another online calculator.
Same goes for shares – investors pay Capital Gains on profits and the ATO is on the lookout for those who are giving away shares or who cease being an Australian resident.
Come June 30, be sure to be able to substantiate any claims you make.
If you can’t, don’t claim it!
This year, if you are worried about completing your tax return, or if it has become too complex and you need assistance, contact the team to make an appointment.
